Beschrijving:Middle East Airlines flight 438 was a scheduled passenger service that was supposed to departed Beirut Airport, Lebanon on December 31, 1975, bound for Dubai and Muscat.The Boeing 747 that was planned to operate the flight suffered an engine problem. The flight was delayed and a Boeing 720 was prepared to replace the 747. The flight took off from Beirut Airport at 02:10 hours local time on January 1, 1976. The aircraft was en route over the Saudi desert at FL370 when radar and radio contact was lost. It was found to have crashed near Al Qaysumah, killing all 81 on board.An investigation revealed that a bomb had exploded in the forward baggage compartment.

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Networkís opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.